Alternate History
Sweepy the Cat
Halifax, West Yorkshire, EnglaPosts: 986MI6 Agent
If you could change the history of bond what would it go like. eg
1962 - DN - SC
A pre-credits sequence and better score.
1963 - FRWL - SC
Same.
1964 - GF - SC
Same.
1965 - TB - SC
Trimmed down.
1967 - YOLT - GL
Same.
1969 - OHMSS - GL
Trimmed down.
1971 - DAF - GL
LTK style .
1973 - LALD - RM
Same.
1974 - TMWTGG - RM
Bigger finale and no Sherrif JW Pepper.
1977 - TSWLM - RM
Same.
1979 - MR - RM
Same as novel.
1981 - FYEO - TD
Different Pre-Credits sequence and no cheesy music.
1983 - OP - TD
Trimmed down, less camp.
1985 - AVTAK - TD
Completely different (Except from Christopher Walken and Duran Duran).
1987 - TLD - TD
Simpler plotline.
1989 - LTK- TD
Trimmed down.
1995- GE - PB
Trimmed down.
1997 - TND - PB
Same.
1999 - TWINE - PB
Trimmed down.
2002 - DAD - PB
Same as first half.
1962 - DN - SC
A pre-credits sequence and better score.
1963 - FRWL - SC
Same.
1964 - GF - SC
Same.
1965 - TB - SC
Trimmed down.
1967 - YOLT - GL
Same.
1969 - OHMSS - GL
Trimmed down.
1971 - DAF - GL
LTK style .
1973 - LALD - RM
Same.
1974 - TMWTGG - RM
Bigger finale and no Sherrif JW Pepper.
1977 - TSWLM - RM
Same.
1979 - MR - RM
Same as novel.
1981 - FYEO - TD
Different Pre-Credits sequence and no cheesy music.
1983 - OP - TD
Trimmed down, less camp.
1985 - AVTAK - TD
Completely different (Except from Christopher Walken and Duran Duran).
1987 - TLD - TD
Simpler plotline.
1989 - LTK- TD
Trimmed down.
1995- GE - PB
Trimmed down.
1997 - TND - PB
Same.
1999 - TWINE - PB
Trimmed down.
2002 - DAD - PB
Same as first half.
Comments
The rest, well, it could go on forever. I agree that FYEO I'd like to see without the goofy slapstick and a Barryesque score. I'm surprised no fan has had a go at this so far.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Actually if I was to rejig NSNA (not on your list) I wouldn't start with a pre-credits but have it start like Dr No, then seque into some Mexican salsa as we see Bond on his mission.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
I like this history very much. A few considerations:
1. Though I'm a big Dalton fan I'd hate to give up Moore's interpretation of FYEO. Maybe Dalton could be brought in in the less camp version of OP.
2. I don't find the plot in TLD too complicated but I think the Afghanistan section should be trimmed down, Caroline Bliss should be replaced (ar at the very least her interaction with Bond should be rethought) and a different actor should play Whittaker.
3. Consider swapping dates of YOLT and OHMSS. I suppose you're right that both should be played by the same actor (Lazenby would suit me fine)
4. I would leave TWINE as is.
DN
John Barry to do the score.
FRWL
Unchanged
GF
Unchanged
TB
Trimmed down
OHMSS
Change sequence so that OHMSS is made before YOLT and stars SC.
YOLT
Introduce GL. Use PTS from DAF to introduce GL. After PTS use part of PTS from FYEO of Bond visiting Tracey's grave to establish continuity. JB kills Blofeld.
DAF
Stars GL. Replace SPECTRE with Mafia and change orbital laser plot.
LALD
Stars GL. Closer to book with bits that were used in LTK and keelhauling sequence from FYEO.
TMWTGG
Stars GL. Remove JW Pepper. Goodnight to be a compotent SIS agent and played by anybody but Brit Ekland. More suspence in final duel between JB and Scaramanga.
Trimm down.
TSWLM
Unchanged apart from starring GL and kill Jaws at end.
MR
Change entire movie
FYEO
Introduce TD with helicopter sequence not featuring Blofeld.
Unchanged apart from keelhauling sequence removed and ending with Thatchers.
OP
Staring TD. Basically same plot only less camp and more of a serious cold war thriller.
AVTAK
Staring TD. Less camp and remove Beach Boys music from PTS.
TLD
Unchanged.
LTK
Change second half so it is as good as the first half.
GE
Unchanged
TND
Change title song. Replace Jonathan Pryce as Carver. Make final fight on stealth ship shorter and sharper.
TWINE
Unchanged
DAD
Change second half so is as good as first half. Change title song. Remove invisible car.
CR
Unchanged.
I could go on for ages, but in a short hand version and only discussing major variations:
DN....a better score and a better title sequence
FRWL....no change
GF....no change
TB....remove the Martin Beswick character, edit the climatic battle
OHMSS....this will follow directly from TB with Connery as Bond
YOLT....introduce Lazenby, retain the story almost as is, but with a graveyard sequence as suggested by Mailfist, make the relationship between Bond and the women more chaste, the Interceptor Rocket should land in the sea and be recovered by SPECTRE via the caves Bond and Kissy investigate, Bloefeld doesnt die.
DAF....still Lazenby and continuing the revenge theme (I have written a few pointers about DAF in another thread), get rid of the stupid Blofeld doubles idea, Bond kills Blofeld
LALD....only use the voodoo scene for the PTS, make the fight with Kananga longer and more vicious, new composer please (Roy Budd anyone?)
TMWTGG....eliminate the Fun House, PTS to show the assassination of the 00-agent in Beirut, a torture sequence replaces the karate fight & Bond is saved by Andrea not Hip's nieces, the Solex power room needs more than one attendant and Bond can later fight / shoot them, Mary Goodnight to be played by Jenny Agutter and is not such a ditsy blonde, Bond Vs Scaramanga - a gun duel that ends with the villian being shot and falling into his Solex power plant thus setting off the explosive climax, new song please !
TSWLM....no change
MR....no change
FYEO....reintroduce a PTS idea from the early TB scripts with Bond uncovering a foreign agent in a fan-tan house in Thailand
OP....PTS to flashback to the suicide of Octopussy's Dad then cut to the killing of 008 in Berlin, otherwise, cut the terrible jokes and cut out the chase in Udaipur
AVTAK....OK I will stick my neck out and say Lewis Collins as Bond, MayDay does not become a good girl and fights Bond to the death, a harder edge removing some of the silliness to the gadgets and the story, if we must have an Angel replace Tanya Roberts with Cheryl Ladd, shorter plz
TLD....still with Collins, too many villians and too many good guys, too confusing a plot and the ending (endings???) is too drawn out, Barry's score has to go, the title song is poor, shorter plz
LTK....Timothy Dalton, PTS is naff but i dont have an alternative at the moment, the film is way too long and the scenes at the cocaine refinary are plain Matt Helm, Pam Bouvier is a very poor Bond Girl - couldn't Bond run off with the duplicitous Talisa Soto character, she's a babe and a nympho (a bit like Bond...), shorter plz
The Property Of A Lady (c.1991)....Yes an imaginary Bond movie, but if Dalton had made a good swing of it you never know. There's a fairly good scenario on a thread on this site.
The Hildebrand Rarity (c.1993)....OK so now I am pushing the boat out; Dalton again; read the scenario posted on this site.
GE....Brosnan's first, lets cut out the rubbish about Sean Bean's double agent and make Robbie Coltrane the villian, a big blustering OTT villian in the style of GF and Largo, the film isnt too bad otherwise, replace both M and Q at this point
TND....its ok, just have the marines come to assault the Stealth Boat rather than the Swarzneggar style finale we have got, replace Sherly Crow's song with Moby's Bond Theme
TWINE....eughh, throw out the script and start agin? start by trimming the PTS, the stuff in Bilbao is fine but the rest of it is the movie proper and not part of the PTS, for goodness sake ditch Xmas Jones, increase the size of Goldie's role as he actually looks like a villian, new theme song plz
DAD....ditto the above in spades, how about a new director, writer and half the cast?
CR....the stuff in Jamaica and Florida seem superflouos to the plot, otherwise no change
Go on discuss!....
1962 - FRWL - SC
1962 - GF - SC
1962 - TB - SC
1962 - YOLT - Gregory Peck
1962 - OHMSS - GP
1962 - DAF - GP
1962 - LALD - GP
1974 - TMWTGG - GP
Sherriff JEW Pepper Helps Bond Kill Scaramanga
1962 - TSWLM - GP
1952 - MR - GP
Better Climax
1962 - FYEO - GP
1962 - OP - GP
1962 - AVTAK - GP
1962 - TLD - GP
1962 - LTK- GP
1962- GE - GP
1962 - TND - GP
1962 - TWINE - GP
1962 - DAD - GP
1974 - Bullet's Path(My Sexy Bond One) - SC
LALD RM less campy, get rid of JW Pepper and the voodoo stuff. More the friendship of Bond and Leighter.
TMWTGG Keep the locations, get rid of Nick Nack, have Chula as a henchman instead, remove the fight at the karate school, replace Lt. Hip with Felix Leighter, make Mary Goodnight alot smarter than was before.
MR RM Dump the dump sight gags, Jaws does not appear,
No going into Outer Space, remove the kidnapping of Dr. Goodhead, I always thought it did not add anything to the story, Bond has his Walther PPK with him.
FYEO TD keep the visit to Tracey's gave, but scrap the Blodfeld stuff after it.
OP TD new storyline, make Major Smythe the villian, keep India as a location, less humor better climax
AVTAK Remove the Beach Boys song, use the short story updated for the 1980's, no May Day, Fire Truck chase, Mary Ann Russell appears instead of Stacy Stutton
TLD TD Fix the story so it is clear what the bad guys "master plan" is, make Whitaker the main badguy, longer fight at the climax.
New story with TD,nothing from LTK screenplay reused.
GE PB have David Arnold score the film instead, more of the relationship with 006 before he went bad.
TND PB better story, flesh out the supporting cast better and trim down the action in the second half.
TWINE PB revise the story, recast Dr. Christmas Jones, tone down the jokes, not make M so clueless.
DAD,new script no Madonna song.
Weezer, for YOLT i was refering to Mailfist's comments above, about a graveyard scene to introduce GL, i thought it a good idea.
The FYEO stuff im suggesting is from details i read about the original PTS for TB.
The idea was to have Bond visit a "fantan" house in Thailand where he watches a beautiful woman perform a dance routine with fans. Her face is covered by an elaborate peacock mask and feathers. Bond visits the girl in her dressing room and knocks the mask from her face. She turns out to be a man: the rouge SPECTRE agent Bond is searching for. They fight, Bond kills the man and escapes.
The producers aparently considered it too elaborate. I think its brilliant, but having said that I am a big fan of the PTS for TB, which features one of the best fight scenes in a Bond film. I would have loved them to have resurrected the fantan idea for any of those dire RM pts (LALD, TMWTGG, MR, FYEO, O, AVTAK).
Dalton take over with FYEO-new opening credits. Octopussy-more serious like FYEO(No Bond in Clown costume). AVTAK-Less or better San Fran Locations(Boreing)Library boreing/Fire truck boreing, new girls, keep ZORON & horse plot. TLD-Keep basically the same.LTK-Polish script but keep basically the same. 1991(Dalton's 6th and final Bond based on the working script idea's that EON was thinking at the time.
Brosnan 4th man to play Bond takes over in 1993's Goldeneye-keep basically same minor script polish(Have him dressed better in Tank scene). 1995 Tomorrow Never Lies-change almost everything. 1997 TWINE-Flesh out Renard's character more, menacing(Hot rocks is not enough). 1999 DAD-Have N.Korea torture plot expanded and put in the movie proper.Keep Moon Korean(No face change/No invisible car/No laser from Sky/No hip-hop Jinx...), use title better in movie(i.e. Bond and Moon are fighting at end, Moon is about to kill Bond : MOON - "It is time for you to die Mr.Bond!" BOND - "I think I'll die another day!" and Bond kills Moon. Brosnan's 5th and final outing is 2002's ????
Daniel Craig the 5th actor to play Bond takes over in 2006's CR-Keep as is!!!!
M - "There's only a Quantum of Solace in any act of Revenge. You may find in the end Bond, that the consolation you receive does not live up to the pain."
BOND - "Yes but the pain is mine...and so shall be the solace."
Dalton take over with FYEO-new opening credits. Octopussy-more serious like FYEO(No Bond in Clown costume). AVTAK-Less or better San Fran Locations(Boreing)Library boreing/Fire truck boreing, new girls, keep ZORON & horse plot. TLD-Keep basically the same.LTK-Polish script but keep basically the same. 1991(Dalton's 6th and final Bond based on the working script idea's that EON was thinking at the time.
Brosnan 4th man to play Bond takes over in 1993's Goldeneye-keep basically same minor script polish(Have him dressed better in Tank scene). 1995 Tomorrow Never Lies-change almost everything. 1997 TWINE-Flesh out Renard's character more, menacing(Hot rocks is not enough). 1999 DAD-Have N.Korea torture plot expanded and put in the movie proper.Keep Moon Korean(No face change/No invisible car/No laser from Sky/No hip-hop Jinx...), use title better in movie(i.e. Bond and Moon are fighting at end, Moon is about to kill Bond : MOON - "It is time for you to die Mr.Bond!" BOND - "I think I'll die another day!" and Bond kills Moon. Brosnan's 5th and final outing is 2002's ????
Daniel Craig the 5th actor to play Bond takes over in 2006's CR-Keep as is!!!!
M - "There's only a Quantum of Solace in any act of Revenge. You may find in the end Bond, that the consolation you receive does not live up to the pain."
BOND - "Yes but the pain is mine...and so shall be the solace."
Same.
1963 - FRWL - SC
Same.
1964 - GF - SC
Someone else as Leiter. Immediately after the atomic bomb is neutralized Bond should pursue Goldfinger and have a fight to the death right there and then instead of the absurd hijacking of the private jet.
1965 - TB - SC
I'd completely revamp this film. I'd make the theft of the bomber the PTS. I'd cut the whole health spa sequence and have the main action start with M informing Bond of the blackmail, that the pilot's body had been found, and that MI6 suspected Largo and Domino, due to Domino's relationship to the pilot and her connection to Largo, a suspected SPECTRE agent. Once in the Bahamas, after some initial detective work, Bond meets up with Domino, and quickly realizes her innocence, and together they plot a way to bring down Largo's scheme, that preferably does not involve ridiculously large and chaotic underwater fight scenes or an explosion so massive that the remnants of an atomic bomb would spew radioactive waste that renders Miami uninhabitable.
1967 - OHMSS - GL
Trimmed down only in the margins. Dress Bond in clothes that are less trendy and more classic. End as Peter Hunt intended if GL had committed to make more films by ending the movie as Bond and Tracy leave the wedding.
1969 - DAF - GL
Killing of Tracy becomes PTS. Eliminate campiness. Bond kills Blofeld, still played by Telly Savalas.
1971 - YOLT - GL
Eliminate campiness. Hopefully movie technology has advanced to the point to where the special effects do not look laughable. Replace Blofeld/SPECTRE with Asia-based SPECTRE-type organization.
1973 - LALD - RM
Keep the McCartney theme, but make sure John Barry scores the film. As originally intended, make Solitare black.
1974 - TMWTGG - RM
Bigger finale and no Sherrif JW Pepper. Replace Britt Ekland with Jane Seymour.
1977 - TSWLM - RM
Same.
1979 - MR - RM
Same as novel. (Caveat: I've never read the novel, but it has to be better than the movie)
1981 - FYEO - RM
Different Pre-Credits sequence.
1983 - OP - TD
Trimmed down, less camp. Replace Caroline Bliss with someone more substantive as Moneypenny for all Dalton films.
1985 - AVTAK - TD
Completely different (Except from Christopher Walken and Duran Duran).
1987 - TLD - TD
Same.
1989 - LTK- TD
Same.
1993 - GE - TD
Let David Arnold score the film.
1997 - TND - PB
Same.
1999 - TWINE - PB
Give Renard a bigger, more assertive role with Renard and King as more or less equal partners. Replace Denise Richards with someone else, possibly Jennifer Connelly.
2002 - DAD - PB
Eliminate nearly all CGI effects except where absolutely necessary. Instead of absurd DNA replacement treatment, have villians undergo DAF/Blofeld-clone style extensive plastic surgery. Completely revamp the final plane sequences for more realism. Eliminate the "slow-motion for effect" effects.
2006 - Casino Royale - DC
Trim towards the end.
-Less over the top
-John Barry still for the score(including Casino Royale)
Dr. No- YOLT: Connery
OHMSS-MWTGG: Lazenby
TSWLM-FYEO: Billington
OP-LTK: Dalton
Brosnan and Craig.
Sorry, Rog, you were too old in 1973, and, although you were a great guy on the set, and loyal to the company, I think that Bond would have been better with Billington, Lazenby, and Dalton from 1969-89.
In truth, I agree. But in an alternative world, Connery would be a bit more dedicated to his art. I actually thought he looked ok in YOLT, it was just his performance that sucked. I do think he aged terribly by DAF, while in NSNA his dodgy fitness was played on by the script writers, unlike poor Sir Roger who had to endure O, and by the time Eon had caught the idea, he had to contend with the cartoonish AVTAK. In an alternative world Sir Roger would always be 41 and looking how he did in LALD or TMWTGG.
I have recently been working on alternate History of Timothy Dalton's bond and I'd like to use Sweepy's topic as a platform. I always felt Dalton deserved a four-film arc and this is how it works out in my ideal world:
1985: "From a View to a Kill" --- TD comes in instead of RM to do AVTAK. AVTAK is radically rewritten (using Fleming's original title). The new film is quite dark (but with three or four chases to lighten the tone) and revolves around the kidnapping of a young British politician by the boss of a HongKong syndicate. Lois Maxwell is replaced as Moneypenny by Alison Doody, who will retain the role throughout Dalton's tenure. Fiona Fullerton plays Tessa Straddler (the leading Bond girl) and a young Kristin Scott Thomas plays Marianne Rousse (the secondary bond-girl). The villain of the film is Zheng Ye Tsei, a Hong Kong mafia boss who plans to sabotage Britain’s talks with China over sovreignty of Hong Kong thus monopolizing HongKong trade. In the film, we learn that Tsei is doing business with a shadowy character called Max Zorin, but the latter never appears in the flesh.
A detailed treatment and plot to follow in an upcoming post.
1987: "The Living Daylights" --- Similar to the actual film, bar the following changes:
a). Main villain Brad Whittaker is replaced by Max Zorin (survived from previous film) and played by Christopher Walken. Villain’s obsession with war and generals is toned down but the psychotic streak is still there. Zorin’s weapons’ trafficking and the conspiracy with General Koskov is the same as Whittaker’s in the actual film.
b). Moneypenny is played by Alison Doody. Her dialogues with Bond will sound very different from the Dalton-Bliss dialogues. They will suggest a different kind of playful banter between Bond and M’s secretary (closer to the spirit of Doody’s brief exchange with Moore in her 30 seconds of screen time in AVTAK). Most importantly, Moneypenny will not pine for Bond so overtly. Nor will she ask him to come listen to her Barry Manilow collection. She might playfully ask him to come over and enjoy her Brahms. At which Bond might respond, in kind: “A little too heavy for my old fashioned ear...”
c). The car-chase to the Austrian border will be sobered up. The Czech border police should look less like a bunch of bumbling idiots. There will be no “Dukes of Hazard” car leap, and no hole carved out of the ice-lake.
d). The final dual between Bond and Zorin will be choreographed differently. Bond will not kill Zorin by detonating the bomb inside the key ring. Rather, he will use the key ring to create a diversion, and emerge from behind the Wellington bust to shoot Zorin in the head.
1989: "License to Kill" --- Identical to the original barring a few minor changes:
a). Moneypenny is once again played by Alison Doody
b). There will be no unrealistic stunts with the oil-trucks; just a straight-up chase, with a lot of destruction and Sanchez’s Colombian gold going up in smoke.
c). The stingers will not be fired.
d). The “why-don’t-you-wait-till-you’re-asked” exchange between Bond and Pam Bouvier will find them both a little less doughy-eyed and a little more like they’ve actually been kissed before.
1991: The Property of a Lady --- I actually posted a detailed treatment and plot summary for this one, a couple of years back. The film will be mostly set in Europe (Prague and Helsinki). The plot starts with on the trail of a professional East-European killer. He discovers an international post-Cold War spy ring with reaches into the British intelligence community.
The main villain is Piotr Malinovski (played by Ciaran Hinds), a Finnish-Russian Billionaire
who aims to exploit the power vacuum in the post-Cold War intelligence community and, eventually, provoke a war between Russia and the Baltic states thus turning back the clock on the end of the cold-war. The Bond girl is played by Irene Jacob, whereas the hitman whom Bond needs to track down turns out to be a sexy hitwoman played by Francesca Neri.
More details to follow.
I hope you guys like my ideas. I offer them with some trepidation.
Brilliant. Creative, yet deadly ruthless, that would have been fantastic!